Xiaomi Mi Note 3 camera scores higher than iPhone 8, Google Pixel and HTC U11 in DxOMark still photography test

Xiaomi has been known for making affordable budget smartphones, but if some of the latest reports are to be believed then it would seem that Xiaomi may now even capture the best smartphone camera segment.

DxOMark is a benchmarking website rating smartphone camera quality and according to its latest scores, the Mi Note 3 has a camera which could be termed as better than the iPhone 8, Google Pixel and the HTC U11 in terms of photography.

The website has given the Xiaomi Mi Note 3 a score of 94 in terms of its still photography chops, while it received a score of 82 in terms of video shooting capabilities which brought the overall score to 90.

In comparison, the Apple iPhone 8, Google Pixel and HTC U11, widely regarded as the best phones for photography, had DxOMark scores of 93, 90 and 90 respectively for their photo capturing capabilities. This speaks volumes about Xiaomi’s determination to provide the best hardware at nearly half the price of the premium flagship devices. The Mi Note 3 has a starting price of CNY 2,499 (approximately Rs 25,000).

According to DxOMark, the Mi Note 3 offers fast and accurate autofocus, effective image stabilisation and impressive zoom capabilities. DxOMark also claimed that the phone could capture good bokeh photos and had good noise reduction under low lighting conditions alongside accurate white balance. However, the bokeh mode did not function that well under dim lights, there were some colour casts observed in the photos and fine details were lost in low light.

Of course, the camera phones to beat this year are the Google  Pixel 2 , Apple  iPhone X , Huawei Mate 10 Pro and the Galaxy Note 8.

The Mi Note 3 is available in two finishes and storage options. A 6 GB RAM and 64 GB storage forms the base version and is available in the black finish at CNY 2,499 (roughly Rs 24,000). The next option packs in 6 GB RAM and 128 GB of internal storage and is available in both blue and black at CNY 2,899 (roughly Rs 28,000) and CNY 2,999 (roughly Rs 30,000) respectively.

You can think of it as a larger Mi 6 but with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 chipset inside. That powerful mid-range chipset is coupled with 6 GB RAM and 128 GB of storage. Coming to the cameras there is a dual camera setup with two 12 MP camera on the rear, with one camera offering a 12 MP + wide angle lens and the second a 12 MP telephoto giving up to 2X optical zoom. There is also 4-axis OIS and bokeh-effect mode.